Amalilio kin, cohorts still in PH

By Dharel Placido, ABS-CBNnews.com

MANILA, Philippines – Relatives and cohorts of fraud suspect Manuel Amalilio of Aman Futures Group are still in the country and government authorities are now working to bring them to justice, the Department of Justice said Monday.

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said a preliminary investigation is now underway after at least 8,000 complaints were filed against the Aman Futures Group Phils., Inc., a firm being implicated in a P12-billion pyramiding scam.

An arrest warrant for the people behind the multi-billion peso scam is expected to be released by the court if the prosecutors find probable cause to file charges against them.

Like Malacañang, de Lima also asked the disgruntled fraud victims to practice restraint and not put the law into their hands. This, as some victims reportedly ransacked one of the offices of Aman Futures in Pagadian City, where most of the 15,000 investors came from.

The government had earlier sought the help of the Interpol in Malaysia in tracking down Amalilio, who was last seen in Kota Kinabalu.

De Lima said government investigators are still verifying reports that Amalilio is a Filipino of Malaysian descent. Separate reports, however, said Amalilio is a Malaysian national married to a Filipina.

"Ang info po ng NBI, although this is still being subject to further verification, ay Filipino of Malasyian descent [si Amalilio]. So we assume at this point na Filipino siya, therefore subjected po siya sa processes natin, pwede po natin siya ipa-deport, etc.," she said.